2012 legacy ES Nav sports tourer CVT -are they any good

[doclip]

Hi there
I'm thinking of buying a demo 2012 legacy ES Nav sports tourer CVT 2.0 petrol
I currently own a volvo XC70 which is getting on a bit and fancy something newer
I need 4Wd as we live in the wilderness high up in Scotland on a mile long private road which is'nt gritted or cleared by the council -the volvo is'nt great in the snow or ice even with snow tyres -eg not as good as SWMBOs sportage
Also i've got used to driving an auto for my daily runner -as im getting on in years and am basically lazy
So if you want an auto 4WD then youre ltd - a new sportage diesel auto is 24.5k but has 7yr warranty which is nice
A new volvo XC70 or Xc60 is daft money and even 2nd hand is >20k ,while an Audi/BMW auto is silly money
Looked at a jeep compass which seems ok but only 2 star ncap

The Scoobie is May 2012 £19k with 500 miles and 5yr warranty-and aside from cloth seats lack of rear parking sensor and heated bum warmer ,seems to tick the boxes -had a test drive in rather ordinary conditions -seemed to fine and CVT was nice and smooth .

So does anyone have personal experience of one of these cars :

1. What are they like in winter weather-ie do you need snow tyres?
2. Is the outback any better given its higher wheel base -otherwise it seems much the same as the legacy
3. What mpg can i expect with the 2.0 auto -im guessing mid 20s for mixed driving maybe mid 30s on a run ?
4. What's the reliability and residuals like on a legacy -i've read they aren't great
5. What's the reliability of the chain driven CVT like -or is too early to say
6. I get the impression that there is strong brand loyalty with scoobies as daily runners in terms of repeat business -but the reviews still suggest poor residuals -im guessing this will be stronger on the deisel ,but they dont do an auto in the diesel .
7. Does anyone run a WRX as a winter car ?
Cheers

[ScoobieWRX]

You should consider a Forester, normally aspirated or Turbo. Loads of room in the back, very comfy drive, supremely capable 4x4 in all weathers and goes well.

Cannot give you any experiences of the latest Legacy, i don't suppose many on here will either. Sorry.

In answer to using Winter/Snow tyres, using winter tyres makes a huge difference when turning and braking, specially on Snow/Ice, and to general pulling away traction too up icy hills.

Many on here use a WRX wagon as a winter hack. Same chassis/floorpan as Forester only not on stilts like the Forester. Of course the WRX handles better on the road with slightly tauter suspension and lower C of G but if you get really bad snow i'd rather be in a Forester.

Forester will run rings around your Volvo and Sportage on the 4x4 front, so will a Legacy come to that. From a personal point of view i think Legacies are nicer to look at i really like the Outbacks too but i think for me the Forester is going to be that bit better in the rough stuff.

No doubt there are Legacy owners that will tell you just how capable their cars are off-road, and i have no doubt they are, but when i see these cars side by side in the showroom or on a forecourt the Forester always looks to have better ground clearance, and that's what swings it for me.

[Watchman]

MASSIVE Legacy fan here - I'm on my 2nd and looking at one of the new ones to buy ~mid-2013.

Don't know anything about fuel economy of the smaller engines or anything at all about the CVT but 5+ years with my MY05 Legacy 3.0 has proven to me that despite the truly horrific fuel economy from the big engine, this car has been my cheapest TCO ever.

I have Nokian tyres on mine all year round. They are quieter than the original tyres, last just as long and make the car laughably impressive in mud, slippery grass and snow.

Personally despite the Forester sitting slightly higher off the road, I believe the Outback represents the perfect compromise for any car. The self-levelling rear suspension makes it virtually foolproof in all offroad conditions except rock-crawling (for which you need a truck/Landy).

I'll be buying one of the new 3.5 litre Outbacks with auto and all the toys. It's the Swiss Army Knife of cars.

[doclip]

Thanks v much
Unfortunately no similar deals on an auto forester or outback at present
Agree higher wheelbase is sound idea

[SrMoreno]

I've no experience of the CVT or the 2 litre engine, I'm afraid. Depreciation on the Legacy looks initially steep, but does seem to plateau. I'm not convinced there are many very cheap Legacies around, or at least not when I was looking earlier this year. I would be very wary of the car you describe, though, as I think you will face a real struggle when it comes to re-sale/trade-in time with a basic spec Legacy (nearly all seem to have leather etc).

The Forester is worth looking at, but the Legacy/Outback is a better proposition for the road, I think.

All that is just my own ill-considered and ill-informed opinion, of course!

[Zed Ed]

Find a diesel manual.

I've averaged 40mpg over the last 30 months, including a lot of urban driving, in my MY10 wagon.

Huge space, bomb proof, loads of kit, great in bad weather or poor road conditions.

No faults on mine.

Very pleased.

[doclip]

Thanks for these comments -I guess any car depreciates a lot in the first few years but the scoobie seems to fair worse than others according to the guides -not sure why that is as they seems to be rated v highly in all the reviews .Also agree with the sentiment that the basic spec car will always be harder to move on , especially being a petrol auto .The sensible one to buy is the manual diesel legacy/outback -however not sure i can be bothered with a manual for my daily driver per se -although a manual is better in ice and snow [which we get a lot off here ]-having said that I have an 1996 manual mx5 which i use in the summer for a bit of fun .Maybe I should go and test a manual diesel outback -the dealer is asking a lot of money -around 22.8 k for a march 2011 SE nav plus 2.0 D with 13k miles - with only 18 mo left on the warranty -seems a lot of money IMHO .I don't understand why in the present economic climate why the dealers are falling over to do amazing deals .Maybe best to wait until the new year and see if the mood changes once all the money has spent over Xmas .

[Screaming Beagle]

Ah, my topic has arrived! Just posted a new topic on this and then saw yours. Having taken delivery of a second hand 2.5 cvt I am really pleased with it. Conversation with the dealer suggested there will always be a market for the 2.5 with the top spec. Less so for the 2 litre. The nav on the 2.5 is also much better integrated. The petrol is slightly slower than the diesel but the manual box on the diesel is quite notchy. I think the auto suits the car better. Even the cvt has performed better than I expected it too but you need to get used to it a bit. So far it's been great in the snow though I think winter tyres may have helped as did not seem as good on the ice as my old forester with geolanders fitted. Yes, outback will get you more clearance but at the expense of roll. So depends what sort of drive you want. But so far I'm one happy customer and its still rare amongst all the German alternatives.